Flow indicator



E. D. SMYSER FLOW INDICATOR 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. 5

nrroezvfy Sept. 4, 1951 Filed May 17, 1947 T H o O Sept. 4, 1951 Filed May 1'7, 1947 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 is; 49 |5 49 i 0 Mil:

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fiIAZ SE NTOR. (YW mgm 1? 477% .QTTOBNEV Patented Sept. 4, 1951 UNITED STATES iATENT OFFICE FLOW INDICATOR Elmer D. SmyserITorrance, Calif.

Application May 17, 1947, Serial No. 748,749

Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in flow indicators and may be regarded as an improvement over the flow indicator disclosed in my copending application Serial No. 563,277, filed November 13, 1944, now Patent No. 2,528,617 granted November '7, 1950.

In my copending application there is disclosed a flow indicator consisting of a body providing two transversely aligned generally circular chambers. A shaft extends through both chambers on which radially extending impellers are mounted that are disposed in the respective chambers and which are angularly Spaced sub stantially 180 degrees about the shaft. Gates are s-wingably mounted in the chambers and are 'engageable by the impellers in the course of the rotation of the impellers on the shaft. An inlet leads to the forward side or one'of the chambers and fluid entering therethrough is directed by the gate so as to drive the impeller therein. A connecting duct leads from the first chamber to the second chamber discharging therein at a point forwardly of its gate so as to be directed thereby to drive the impeller therein before passing through the outlet arranged at the back of the second chamber. The shaft is connected to a recorder that will indicate the number of revolutions taken by the shaft and in this manner the quantity of fluid passing through the indicator is indicated volumetrically.

The construction disclosed in my copending application has been utilized advantageously for measuring the volume of oil passing through a pipe line such as, for example, the oil delivered from a well to a tank, or a collecting manifold..-

When used on lines where the volume passing through the pipe line is relatively small, the eonstruction disclosed in said application has given very little trouble and has indicated the volume passing through the indicator. with reasonable accuracy. However, when the device disclosed in said application was installed in lines wherein the flow was quite rapid or quite high in volume, it was found that during each rotation of the impeller in the first chamber its gate, on being the sealing section.

an improvement wherein there are by-pass passages or cavities formed in the walls of the chambers opposite the edges of the gate so that as the gate is swung by the impeller toward the inlet, these by-pass passages will permit of flow around the gate thus avoiding the building up of back pressure in the inlet and the objectionable vibration. While the by-pass passages or cavities are open in one chamber of the indicator they are closed in the companion chamber so that fluid cannot pass through the indicator'without being measured. At the same time the swingingv of the gates in the chambers toward their respective inlets does not tend to restrict or retard the flow momentarily as in the indicator disclosed in my copending application.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved flow indicator wherein the by-pass passages are so arranged that their rear walls in effect provide seats for sections of sealing material on the gates when the gates are in their rear-most positions engaging the hubs on the impellers so that in this manner when the gates are seated on the hubs of the impellers and are directing flow against the impellers, leakage around the edges of the gates is effectively prevented.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved impeller for flow indicators consisting of a hub applicable to theshaft of the indicator carrying a radially extending arm on the trailing side of which there is secured a section of sealing material and to provide a support on the-trailing side of the arm that is spaced from the outer unsecured end of the sealing material so that as the impeller passes beneath its gate the free or unsecured outer end of the sealin material may flex between the arm and the support without becoming worn by its engagement with the gate thus prolonging the sealing life of Another object of the invention is to provide an improved gate for flow indicators wherein a section of sealing material is secured to the forward side thereof in such a manner that it may be easily and quickly removed and replaced when it becomes worn.

Another object of the invention is to provide a flow indicator of this general character wherein a spring is used to urge the gate rearwardly and to so mount the spring that its life may be materially prolonged.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, which will be made manifest in the following detailed description and specifically pointed out in the appended claims, reference is had to the accompanying drawings for an illustrative embodiment of the invention, wherein:

Figure 1 is a view in side elevation of a flow indicator embodying the present invention, one side wall or cover being shown as having been removed;

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section taken substantially upon the line 2-2 upon Fig. l in the direction indicated;

Fig. 3 is a composite section taken substantially upon the line 33 upon Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a partial view similar to Fig. 1 but illustrating the gate as having been engaged and lifted by its impeller; and

Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken substantially upon the line 5-5 upon Fig. 4.

Referring to the accompanying drawings wherein similar reference characters designate similar parts throughout, the improved flow indicator consists of a body It providing on its sides two generally circular chambers I I and I2, the outer sides of which are closed by end plates or caps I3 and I4 secured to the body such as by cap screws I5. This body is adapted to be connected in a pipe line in such a manner that the pipe I6 constitutes an inlet leading thereto and the pipe I 1 serves as an outlet leading therefrom. The body I0 is suitably cored so that the inlet therein from the pipe l6 discharges into the top of the chamber I I only. Egress from this chamber is through a duct or passage I8 to the top of the companion chamber I2 and fluid, after being directed by the gate therein against the impeller in that chamber, finally passes out through the outlet leading to the pipe I1.

A shaft I9 extends transversely through the body and its associated caps 53 and I4 and has one end connected to a recorder or register generally indicated at '20. The connection indicated at 2I is preferably such as to provide a limited amount of universal movement between the register and the shaft so that when the register is secured to the cap I4 it is not essential that its shaft be in perfect alignment with shaft I9. Impellers 22 and 23 are keyed upon the shaft I9 and each has a generally cylindrical hub 'on the ends of which there are circumferential edges 24 that bear and turn against fiber inserts 25 that are recessed in the end caps I3 and I4 and in the sides of the partition 26 that separates the chambers II and I2 except for the connecting duct I8. Each impeller has a radially extending arm 21 presenting on one side a rounded or cam face 28 and. on the other side a fiat, substantially radial surface 29. This arm is in width substantially equal to the normal width of its chamber and extends outwardly so as to pass closely adjacent the outer or circumferential wall of its chamber. A section 30 of sealing material that may be formed of soft flexible rubber, together with a very thin, flexible section of sheet metal 36a, are secured to the face 29 by means of screws 3i extending through a combined cleat and support indicated at 32. These screws are located adjacent the inner end of the section 39 only so that the outer end of the section is left free or loose. The section 30 is designed to wipe against the outer or circumferential Wall of its cavity and to wipe against the lateral walls. However, during rotation of the impeller, as the impeller passes beneath the rear side of its gate .33 as illustrated in Fig. 4, the outer end of the sealing section 39 may swing away from the trailing face 29 of the impeller arm due to the spaced relation of the outer end of the support 32. Consequently, as viewed in Fig. 4, as the impeller passes beneath the gate 33, the gate is first supported on the end of the arm 21 and shortly thereafter on the end of the support 32 with the end of the sealing material merely flexing therebetween, reducing wear on its outer end as it passes beneath the gate. The thin section of sheet metal 30a has its marginal edges so positioned as to sweep closely adjacent the walls of the chamber. This section is quite thin and to some extent resilient, having a resiliency and thickness comparable with that of a flexible safety razor blade. This section provides a support for the sealing material 38 and will serve to keep the walls of the chamber relatively clean of deposited wax. 'On the other hand, if sand particles should deposit on these walls the flexibility of the section will permit its edges to flex and pass thereover. The gates 33 in the two chambers I I and I2 are swingable about coincident axes on aligned pins 34 that extend into the two chambers II and I2 from opposite sides of the partition 26. Preferably there is a rubber bushing 35 interposed between each pin 34 and the knuckle of its respective gate. The gates are so arranged that after their respective impellers have passed beneath them the gates will swing downwardly and rearwardly into engagement with the hubs of their respective impellers, as illustrated in Fig. 1. Each chamber II and I2 has its side walls provided with by-pass passages or cavities opposite the side edges of its respective gate. Thus one by-pass passage 36 is formed on the inner face of the cap I4 and its companion by-pass passage is formed on the face of the partition 26 and is indicated at 37. In a similar manner a by-pass passage 38 is formed on the inner face of the cap I3 and its companion bypass passage is formed on the wall of the partiti-o'n 25, as indicated at 39. Each of these bypass passages or cavities is generally quadrantshaped to accommodate the swinging movement of its respective gate. However, as illustrated in Fig. 4, the rear wall of each cavity is substantially straight, as indicated at 4 9, and is approxi mately tangent to the hub of its respective impeller. Each gate is in width approximately equal to the width of the arm on its impeller but carries on its forward side a sealing section II formed of soft stretchable rubber. These sealing sections are somewhat wider than the gates, as illustrated in Fig. 3, and project laterally beyond their side edges into the lay-pass passages o'r cavities so as to provide lateral lips 42 designed to engage and seal on the rear walls 49 when the gates are in their rearward-most positions, as shown in Fig. 1. Consequently, in these positions the flexible lips 42 will be forced by the incoming fluid pressure into engagement with the walls 40, effectively preventing leakage around the gates when the gates are in their rearward-most or closed positions engaging the hubs of their respective impellers. The sealing sections 4| are slightly longer than their respective gates providing portions 43 which overlie portions of the web 64 on each partition to prevent leakage to the knuckle of the gate. These sections of sealing material are secured to the forward faces of their respective gates by means of small headed rivets 4'5 and the sections of sealing material have buttonhol-e slits formed therein which are stretched over the heads of the rivets. This serves adequately to retain the sealing material on the gate but permits the sealing material to be readily removed and replaced in find it advantageous to apply rubber bushings 511 around these studs so that a resilient layer is interposed between the spring and the stud by which it is anchored. This resilient bushing serves to prolong the life of each spring in that I have noticed that if the spring is anchored directly around the stud the spring is apt to break in a relatively short time.

The operation of the above described construction is as follows: Fluid, such as oil, entering the indicator from the inlet l6 encounters the forward side of the gate 33 which is covered with the sealing material 41' and is"directed downwardly thereby toward the impeller inthe chamber I I, thus driving the impeller andfimparting rotary movement to the shaft' [9. As the impeller in the chamber ll approaches completion of one revolution, 'the fluid thus admitted to this chamber may then pass therefrom through the duct l8 to the chamber I2 on the forward side of its gate to be directed thereby against its impeller and-to cause its impeller to likewise impart rotary motion to the shaft l9 before the fluid escapes to the outlet l1. As the two impellers are located on the shaft l9 one hundred and eighty degrees apart, one impeller will be driven by the fluid passing through the indicator while the other impeller is passing beneath its gate. When the impeller encounters its gate the cam surface 28 engages the gate and lifts the gate from the position shown in Fig. 1 to the position shown in Fig. 4, and as the impeller passes through the position illustrated in Fig. 4, the outer free end of the sealing section 30 may be flexed as illustrated in Fig. 4, thus reducing wear on its outer end. The gate is first supported by the arm 21 and quickly has its support shifted to the outer end of the support 32.

In the position shown in Fig. 4, it will be noted that the gate has swung forwardly toward the inlet so as to be disposed in the paths of the oil entering through the inlet. In the present form of construction this does not involve any severe rise in pressure in the inlet in that the forward swinging movement of the gate opens the by-pass passages or cavities permitting the oil to flow around the sides of the gate as well as across the small space still available at its end. As the impeller continues its rotary movement from the position shown in Fig. 4 to the position shown in Fig. 1, the gate is released and allowed to return to the position shown in Fig. 1 wherein it re-engages the cylindrical hub on the impeller. In this position the lips 42 seal against the rear walls 40 preventing leakage through the by-pass cavities around the gate and causing all flow of incoming oil to be directed downwardly against the impeller. It will be appreciated that in the chamber [2 a similar cycle of operations is simultaneously taking place but timed 180 degrees from the timing of the operations in the chamber l I. When the by-pass passages or cavities are open in chamber H, the corresponding by-pass passages or cavities in chamber l2 are closed and, conversely, when the by-pass cavities in chamber l2 are closed. those in chamber l I are open. Inasmuch as one set of by-pass cavities is always closed, it is impossible for flow to take place through the indicator directly from the inlet to the outlet without causing one of the impellers to impart rotary'motion to the shaft Ill. The rotations of the shaft ID are recorded on the recorder 20 and are indicative'of the volume of oil that has passed through the indicator.

It will be apprec'iated that the improved indicator is highly advantageous in that by means of the by-pas'sing, pressures in the inlet I'B'are not suddenly built up due to the swinging of the gate 33 into the path of the inlet. Furthermore, the construction is of relatively simple and durable design wherein leakage around the impeller is effectively prevented by'engagement of the edges of the sealing'sections 30 with the walls of their respective chambers. If these sealing sections become worn and'require replacement, this can be easily accomplished by removing the caps 13 and M; the supports 32 and the screws 3| and new sealing sections substituted therefor. Similarly, if the sealing material 4| should require replacement, this can be'easily accomplished byremoving the end caps and stretching the buttonhole slits in thesealing material 4| over the heads of the rivets inremoving and replacing this material. The arrangement is such that although by-passing can readily take place around the gate when the gate is in lifted position, an effective seal is provided by the lips 42 preventing leakage around the gate when the gate is in its rearmost position.

Various changes may be made in the details of construction without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A fiow indicator comprising a body having a first and second chamber in side-by-side relationship, an inlet leading to the forward side of the first chamber, an outlet leading from the rear side of the second chamber, a shaft extending through both chambers, impellers mounted upon said shaft and disposed in said chambers respectively, said impellers being angularly disposed with relation to each other on the shaft, a gate in each chamber, the gate in the first chamber being engageable by its impeller and swingable toward the inlet, the gate in the second chamber 4 being engageable by its impeller and swingable in the same direction, a duct connecting the chambers from behind the gate in the first chamber to forwardly of the gate in the second chamber, there being by-pass cavities formed in the side walls of the chambers arranged to betraversed by the edges of the gates as the gates are swung by their respective impellers toward the inlet, the rear walls of the cavities providing seats for the sides of the gates when the gates are in their rearmost positions.

2. In a flow indicator, a chamber, an impeller rotatable therein, a gate swingable in the chamber for directing flow against the impeller, there being by-pass cavities in the walls of the chamber adapted to be traversed by the side edges of the gate whereby when the gate is moved forwardly by the impeller during its rotation, bypassing may take place around the side edges of the gate, and -a section of sealing material secured to the gate presenting flexible lips at the sides thereof 'engageable with rear walls of the by-pa'ss cavities to prevent leakage through the by-p'ass cavities when the gate is in its rearmost position.

3. In a flow indicator, a body providing a chamber, an impeller mounted for rotation in the chamber, a gate swingably mounted for movement in the body for directing flow against the impeller, there being bypass cavities in the body located along the path of travel of the gate and adapted to be traversed by the side edges of the gate whereby when the gate is moved forwardly by the impeller during rotation of the impeller, bypassing may take place around the side edges of the gate, and sealing means carried by the gate for engaging the rear walls of the bypass cavities to prevent leakage through the bypass cavities when the gate is in its rearmost position.

'4. In a flow indicator, a body providing a chamber, an impeller mounted for rotation in the chamber, a gate swingably mounted for movement in the body for directing flow against the impeller, the side edges of the gate terminating short of the side walls of the chamber whereby bypassing may take place around the side edges of the gate, there being rear. walls extending inwardly from the side walls of the chamber and located at the rearmost position of the gate, and sealing means carried by the "gate for engaging said rear walls when the gate is in its rearmost position to prevent leakage around the gate.

- 5. In a flow indicator, a chamber, an impeller rotatable therein, a gate swingable in the chamber for directing flow against the impeller, there being bypass cavities in the walls of the chamber adapted to be traversed by the side edges of the gate whereby when the gate is moved forwardly by the impeller during its rotation, bypassing may take place around the side edges of the gate, and a section of sealing material secured to the side of the gate opposite the side which the impeller engages, the section of sealing material extending beyond the side edges of the gate but terminating short of the side walls of the cavity and engaging with the rear walls of the cavity when the gate is in its rearmost position to prevent leakage around the gate.

- ELMER. D. SMYSER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 77,780 Thunell et al. 'May 12, 1868 601,854 Meyer Apr. 5, 1898 902,054 Cofileld Oct. 27, 1908 926,689 COfiield a. June 29, 1909 1,306,238 Ulland June 10, 1919 1,421,690 Howard as 11 July 4, 1922 1,983,033 Hutchinson Dec. 4, 1934 

